Acceptance of your Low Ball Offer? - Not With My Seller!

What I find interesting is that you never know unless you ask

It never pays to insult the seller. 

Don't take the offer personally. Just run it up the flag pole and at the listing tell the owner this will happen. Don't shoot the piano player, messenger. The owner of the home decides and it is just part of the activity.

A great way to put it. Fortunately, here in Charlotte we are in a seller's market and buyers know they can't be doing low-ball offers if they really want a home.

Maybe my market is making me cynical.

I see many properties that are overpriced based on sold comps.Even after getting an accepted offer, they've failed to appraise. I even saw one recently where the property did appraise, and the bank refused to accept the appraisal. A second appraisal was ordered, and they rejected that one too.

I'll continue to make the right offer, even if it is significantly below the "asking" price.

On a side note, I've found that not every seller is interested in Top Dollar for their property, Sometimes flexible closing dates and other accomodations are more important.

I recently saw a seller take the lower of two offers. The lower offer allowed her to stay in the home she was selling, while she located, bought, and moved to her new home.

It is just a number that COULD start the ball rolling but everyone gets emotional with the person trying to steal the house and test how desperate the Seller is. An agent can calm the waters.

Like Richie said ... you never know unless you ask.

Sellers don't feel insulted if the strategy is reviewed with them before the sign goes in the ground.  It's just the nature of many people, and a place to begin the negotiation process.

Depending on how low it is, it could be worth a counter.  But if it's comically low I usually just ignore it.  

Hi Bobbie,

Sellers do get emotionally involved with their sales price! Thank goodness they have us to navigate them through the process.  This recently happened to one of my sellers, he said he would not respond!

Low ball offers sometimes work and sometimes do not. Despite my insistance that my buyer respond to every offer they were not doing so. I'm only 100% sure that we could have gotten a deal done if these offers were no only so low, but if my buyer were wiling to respond... even at close to asking.

Sometimes a conversation between agents before the offer comes in can help. Not always.

Oh my low ball offers are just not the way to go. It does make a client unhappy and most of the time they will not counter the offer. 

The buyer can offer, the seller can refuse to accept, and they don't have to counter.  It's really nothing personal.  It is business.  

And a P.S. -- I remember writing up an offer and hand-delivering it to the sellers with their agent present.  I went over why the buyer offered what he did.  They were "insulted" and didn't accept or counter.  My client moved on and bought another home.  About 8 months later, the home still had not sold and had several price reductions.  About a year later, the property SOLD . . . but it closed below what we had offered.  The other side of the low-ball coin.

Sure, some listings end up being overpriced, and the market changes.

Sure, an offer can be made for less than asking.

BUT, it needs to be at a resonable price, or reasonable enough terms such that the seller will be inclined to respond in a way to elicit potentially subsequent and successful conclusion.

IF it's too low and it simply insults the seller, then nobody wins.

This isn't rocket science, though it seems I have to explain it clearly every so often.

You make a point that happened on the last lowball offer I had. My client wanted to reject immediately but I expressed we should at least counter. Long story short, we did ultimately close but like you said, my clients had no desire to help them out on basic things that popped up along the way. The lowball offer gave them a bad taste and they had no desire to "help" the buyers in any way. 

Bobbie Smith  I had this happen to me on one of my newly listed properties . My seller was so insulted she almost took the house off the market . The buyers agent agent when asked why they offered so low he responded they can take it or leave it . With permission of the seller I responded they will leave it . When your buyers are serious tell them to re write their offer . One week later I received another offer from a different agent at a negotiable price